Southwark Council launches new dockless bikes

12 March 2018

Southwark Council is welcoming two dockless bike providers, ofo and Mobike, into the borough today (12 March), making Southwark the first council south of the river to embrace on demand bike hire. Cllr Ian Wingfield, Cabinet Member for Environment and the Public Realm, was joined by and Steve Pyer, General Manager at Mobike and Joseph Seal-Driver, Operations Manager at ofo, for the launch in Canada Water Square.

The council is keen to bring on demand bike hire to Southwark, and has worked with many residents and other interested groups, who were instrumental in bringing about the move.

Southwark Council is committed to improving road safety and cycling infrastructure; it has opened a number of Quietways, which are peaceful cycle routes away from busy traffic and big roads, they are ideal for new cyclists.

People who are returning to cycling after a bit of a break can also take advantage of the council’s cycle training schemes, which help to promote safe, responsible cycling.

Mobike and ofo are a great fit for Southwark, their dockless bikes are already established across a number of major cities and London boroughs, in fact neighbouring boroughs are looking to work with them as well.

Another of Southwark Council’s priorities is addressing the London wide air quality problem. Many of the borough’s schools have been working with the council to teach children to ride bikes and encourage them to walk and cycle to school. The council hopes that the new dockless bikes will open cycling up to even more people, making riding to the shops, the library or the park, easy now as well.

Both Mobike and ofo are starting out with 200 bikes in Southwark each, they can be located and rented through their respective apps, which provide access to unlock the bikes. When a cyclist reaches their destination they can use the app to find guidance about where to leave the bike, taking care not to cause an obstruction, and to lock it up ready for the next user.

Cllr Ian Wingfield said: “I am really pleased to be bringing on demand bike hire to the whole of Southwark. Mobike and ofo are experts in their field and they are committed to working with us to promote responsible and safe cycling, including the parking of their bikes.

“Many residents have been very clear that this is something that they would welcome and we hope the bikes will help encourage people to give cycling a try and get out and explore the whole of Southwark.”